Tom Hanks paid a tearful curtain call tribute to his dear friend and collaborator Nora Ephron after his debut in the Broadway show "Lucky Guy," which Ephron wrote, at New York City's Broadhurst Theatre.

"That was a tough moment. We were going to do this, and Nora and George C. Wolfe (the play's director) were going to walk out onstage. I miss her. What more can you say?" Hanks told the New York Post.

“You could be working, and you could be talking about personal things, you could be on vacation and talking about cultural history, you could be having a very lazy breakfast and you would be talking about Saddam Hussein. Nora was fascinated by everything," Hanks said.

Hanks starred in several films written by Ephron over the years, including the romantic comedy "Sleepless in Seattle" and its sequel "You've Got Mail," both of which co-starred Meg Ryan, one of several celebrities in attendance at the show.

"I feel like there is a wonderful spirit in this room tonight," Ryan told the Post.

"Lucky Guy" follows the tumultuous and fierce New York City newspaper tabloid wars of the 1980s and 1990s. Hanks' character is based on the late New York Daily News reporter Mike McAlary, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and columnist who died of colon cancer in 1998.Editor's Note: The IRS’ Worst Nightmare — How to Pay Zero Taxes